Composite climbable chimney and method of building same



Oct. 6, 1970 K. SENFTLEBEN 3,531,845

COMPOSITE CLIMBABLE CHIMNEY AND METHOD OF BUILDING SAME Filed Dec. 11, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 i ll I7 l ZEIT Och 6, 1970 v K. SENFTLEBEN 3,531,845

COMPOSITE CLIMBABLE CHIMNEY AND METHOD OF BUILDING SAME Wvg/W0@ Y /f/W/I .swf/Vea United States Patent 3,531,845 COMPOSITE CLIMBABLE CHIMNEY AND METHOD OF BUILDING SAME Karl Senftleben, Hannover, Germany, assignor to L. & C.

Steinmuller G.m.b.H., Gummersbach, Rhineland, Germany Filed Dec. 11, 1968, Ser. No. 784,292 Int. Cl. F231' 11/00; E04f .l1/00 U.S. Cl. 52-187 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DSCLOSURE The present invention relates to a climbable chimney composed of cylindrical sections and also concerns a method of building the same.

It is known to assemble finished cast sections for a chimney by means of a platform surrounding the chimney being built and adapted to be raised and lowered, while the individual cast sheet metal sections are pulled up and assembled by means of a mast or pole mounted on the platform and by means of clamps detachably connected to rails of the sheet metal chimney which rails serve as track for the platform. The individual sections are interconnected by flanges. With this building method which is suitable for low chimneys only, the flanges have the effect of cooling ribs whereby the temperature in the interior of the chimney may drop below the dew point and initiate considerable corrosion.

There are also known so-called heat chimneys which are protected against lateral stresses by supporting scaffolds surrounding same while the flue gas pipe proper is assembled independently of the surrounding supporting scaffold, and the cast sections of the flue gas pipe are guided in sliding sleeves so as to be individually longitudinally displaceable.

It is further known to design the sheet metal chimney with two walls for avoiding too great a cooling of the ue gases, while a heat insulating air mantle exists between the inner and outer walls. Reinforcing means within the air mantle area are connected only to the outer pipe, but do not engage the inner pipe or are only in slidcontact therewith. The individual sections are welded to each other and the inner pipe rests on the foundation.

There has, furthermore, become known a method of building up a chimney of cylindrical sections by means of a tower crane arranged in the interior of the chimney in which instance the chimney itself serves as scaffold and the tower crane is pulled up from section to section. The two portions of each longitudinally divided section are simultaneously outside the already assembled chimney sections pulled upwardly and screwed together and are by means of screws connected to the already built up portion of the chimney. The chimney rests on the foundation, and the building up of the chimney is effected in upward direction from the bottom upwardly. The screw connection necessary along the circumference and in the longitudinal direction of the individual sections is, in view of the required flanges and the machining thereof, rather expensive. The sheet metal chimney is not sufice liciently protected against radiation toward the outside, the assembly can be effected only in upward direction, and the static loads by welds, etc. have to be absorbed by the said metal chimney along. A continuous checking of the chimney is likewise not possible. Also, with this design, corrosion in view of the cooling rib effect referred to above at the areas where the individual sections are connected to each other is unavoidable.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a chimney and method of building same, which will overcome the above mentioned drawbacks.

It is another object of this invention to provide a chimney and a method of building same which will make it possible to mount the sheet metal chimney in a short time and at low cost and selectively in either direction, upwardly or downwardly, or simultaneously in both directions.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a chimney as set forth in the preceding paragraphs which will permit a sucient heat insulation toward the outside and will prevent the temperature in the chimney from dropping below the dew point in view of the cooling rib effect.

Still another object of this invention consists in the provision of a chimney as outlined in the preceding paragraphs which will permit the employment of prefabricated parts, and will protect the chimney against lateral stresses while permitting expansion and a continuous dangerless checking of the chimney.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification, in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. l illustrates a concrete shank for use in connection with the building of a chimney, without the inserted flue gas pipe.

FIG. 2 shows the finished chimney with inserted flue gas pipe, with the Y-pipe which may be fixed or displaceable, and with the liquid-stuing boX.

PIG. 3 illustrates the assembly of the flue gas pipe sections in downward direction, the last but one section being in the state of being assembly from below.

FIG. 4 illustrates the simultaneous build-up of a chimne in upward and downward direction from opposite en s.

FIG. 5 shows the building up of a chimney only in npward direction.

FIG. 6 illustrates a horizontal cross section of the chimney.

The objects underlying the present invention, as set forth above, have been realized according to the invention by mounting in down-ward direction the rolled individual sections which overlap each other along the longitudinal edge portions and thereby have a smaller diameter than in the finished assembled condition of the individual sections of the ue gas pipe suspended at the head of a concrete shank, said flue gas pipe being able to change in downward direction without changing the mouth of the chimney. The said sections are laterally not guided. If desired, the individual sections may be transported by the flue pipe portion which temporarily rests on the foot of the concrete shank in upward direction and then may be assembled. The respective assembled section is formed into a cylindrical body by a longitudinal welding seam and is connected to the built-up gas pipe section by a circular Welding seam.

According to a further development of the invention, the flue gas pipe which is suspended at the top and does not require lateral guiding means While lbeing able to expand in downward direction is connected lto the flue gas feeding conduits, for instance a Y-pipe, through the intervention of a single liquid-stuiiing box in the vicinity of the ground. The intermediate space between the concrete shank and the flue gas pipe, which space is closed toward the top serves for assembling a safety ladder or stairs and platforms for making the chimney climbable, and simultaneously serves to reduce the heat radiation. Lateral stresses are absorbed by the concrete shank. An occurrence common with standing-up flue pipes (not suspended flue pipes) namely, the expansion of the flue pipe out of the mouth of the shank in View of thermal expansion of the raw material will not be encountered whereby the formation of an under-pressure zone at the gas side will be prevented and consequently the upper flow gas guiding plate will not be affected by turbulence inherent to the formation of an under-pressure zone on the gas side, and flue gas back flow will not occur.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the rolled section 1 which is not yet welded together in longitudinal direction thereof is from the side moved below the concrete shank 2 and placed so that its longitudinal axis is substantially vertical. The conveying means 4 for instance block and tackle, which is mounted on the suspending scaffold 3 and extends downwardly grasps the vertically standing chimney section provided with common suspending devices such as a hook 5 and pulls the said section upwardly to the respective assembling station 7, if required through the already assembled and welded section 6 of the flue gas pipe 8. At the assembly station 7 the section 1 is by any standard means bent out to the prescribed diameter, whereupon the section is welded along the respective longitudinal gap and is furthermore welded to the already built-up portion of the flue gas pipe 8. After completion of this operation, the next llue gas pipe section is lifted and assembled in a corresponding manner.

When the assembly of the flue gas pipe 8 is effected in upward direction or Simultaneously in downward and upward direction, the lowermost section 9 (FIGS. 4 and 5) is provided with shoulders 10 which are detachable after the assembly and which during the assembly rest upon the concrete structure 11.

The connection between the flue gas pipe and the Y-pipe 12 which stands on the ground and if desired may be laterally displaceable is effected by a liquid-stufng box 13 which absorbs the downward expansion of the llue gas plpea In the annular channel between the concrete shank 2 and the flue gas pipe 8 there are provided platforms 14 and stairs 15 which are carried by the concrete Shank 2 and are not connected or do not engage the iiue gas pipe 8.

As will be evident from the above, the chimney design according to the present invention has over heretofore known chimney designs the advantages that it represents a simple stable welding construction of the flue gas pipe which is also suitable for very high chimneys. Furthermore, the present invention makes possible a fast, easy, and safe assembly, and the :Hue gas pipe can freely expand downwardly while only one connection is necessary to the iixed connecting parts. Furthermore, the invention prevents a dropping of the temperature in the chimney below the dew point while permitting a continuous checking without danger of all chimney sections.

Itis, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular construction shown in the drawings, but also comprises any modifications within the scope of the disclosure.

What I claim is:

1. A climbable chimney which includes: a substantially vertical hollow chimney shaped concrete shank, support-` ing means supporting said shank, a plurality of tubular metallic sections axially superimposed upon each other and arranged within said shank in radially spaced relationship to the inner wall surface of said shank so as to define an annular chamber therewith, said tubular sections being welded to each other at the respective abutting end faces thereof so as to form a continuous metallic pipe with each other, said pipe being in suspended condition with its upper end suspended at the upper end portion of said shank and with the lower end portion of said pipe free to expand in downward direction.

2. A chimney according to claim 1, in which each of said tubular sections consists of a rolled substantially cylindrical body representing a sheet metal plate bent into substantially cylindrical shape with the longitudinal edges thereof welded together.

I 3. A chimney according to claim .1, which includes: conduit means for feeding flue gas to said pipe, said conduit means being arranged at said supporting means, and liquid-stuffing box means interconnecting said feeding conduit means and said suspended pipe while permitting expansion of the latter.

4. A chimney according to claim 3, in which said stuifing box means is arranged near the ground and is connected to the lowermost tubular section of said pipe.

5. A chimney according to claim 1, which includes means arranged in said annular chamber and connected to said concrete shank only and forming steps for permitting climbing said chimney.

6. A method of building a clirnbable chimney, which includes the steps of: erecting supporting means for supporting a concrete chimney-shaped shank, building a concrete chimney-shaped hollow shank on said supporting means, rolling a plurality of sheet metal plates into a plurality of at least approximately cylindrical bodies with the end portions of each plate overlapping each other after having been rolled into approximately cylindrical shape, each of said cylindrical bodies having an outer diameter considerably less than the respective adjacent inner diameter surface area of said concrete shank, introducing a first cylindrical body into said shank to the top of the latter and after bending said first introduced cylindrical body open until the substantially vertical edges of said cylindrical body abut each other welding the same along said edges to a complete tubular member, suspending the thus formed cylindrical body at the top of said shank, successively introducing said cylindrical bodies into said shank while welding adjacent cylindrical bodies to each other until said cylindrical bodies form a continuous pipe, having its lower end free to expand.

7. A method according to claim 6, in which the building up of said pipe from said cylindrical bodies is effected in downward direction.

8. A method according to claim 6, in which the building up of said pipe from said cylindrical bodies is effected in upward direction.

9. A method according to claim 6, in which the building up of said pipe from said cylindrical bodies is effected simultaneously in downward and upward direction.

10. A method according to claim 9, in which that portion of the pipe which is being built up in upward direction is temporarily rested on said supporting means.

11. A method according to claim 6, in which at least some of `the cylindrical bodies are moved to their respective final location through cylindrical bodies already arranged within said shank.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,275,902 3/ 1942 Hasenburger 52-219 JOHN E. MURTAGH, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R.

52-2l5, 745; llo-184 

